X

    Twitter Erupts as Odell Beckham Joins Baker Mayfield, Browns in Reported Trade

    Scott Polacek@@ScottPolacekFeatured ColumnistMarch 13, 2019

    New York Giants star receiver Odell Beckham Jr., talks to the media at Giant headquarters in East Rutherford, N.J., Friday, Dec. 28, 2018. Beckham has been ruled out for the fourth straight game. Coach Pat Shurmur announced Friday that Beckham will miss Sunday's regular-season finale against Dallas with a quad injury. Beckham sustained the injury on the final play of New York's 25-22 loss at Philadelphia on Nov. 25. (AP Photo/Tom Canavan)
    Tom Canavan/Associated Press

    The Cleveland Browns won zero games during the 2017 season and may be the AFC North favorites in 2019.

    Cleveland's turnaround continued Tuesday when Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reported they traded for wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Cleveland sent the No. 17 overall pick in the 2019 draft, a 2019 third-round pick and safety Jabrill Peppers to the New York Giants for the talented playmaker. 

    Twitter naturally had plenty of reactions:

    Bleacher Report @BleacherReport

    https://t.co/o5MI0FeZGd

    Dustin Fox @DustinFox37

    Damn that looks good on @obj https://t.co/Muqnn0GOCR

    Cleveland and its fanbase are surely fired up as well:

    Andrew Siciliano @AndrewSiciliano

    "They better have the firefighters on standby, because that city is about to burn down.” - @joethomas73 @nflnetwork @NFLTotalAccess

    CJ McCollum @CJMcCollum

    We’ve been waiting for this for years . We deserve this 🙌🏾 https://t.co/mxmhkDzeBA

    Tyler Dunne @TyDunne

    LeBron James is going to take his talents back to Cleveland any day now.

    Beckham will have the chance to play with wide receiver Jarvis Landry again on the Browns.

    The two played together for the LSU Tigers from 2011 through 2013, helping lead the SEC school to a BCS Championship Game appearance during their tenure together. Quarterback Baker Mayfield is sure to benefit from having the pair at his disposal, as one will almost always be facing single coverage on a given play.

    The chance to play together again reportedly had an impact on the trade:

    Charles Robinson @CharlesRobinson

    Part of the reason the OBJ to #Browns deal came together fairly quickly the last 24 hours, Beckham Jr.’s preferred destination was playing again with longtime friend Jarvis Landry. #Giants had been working the phones on Beckham Jr. hard since free agency opened.

    Twitter Erupts as Odell Beckham Joins Baker Mayfield, Browns in Reported Trade
    Video Play Button
    ✨ Watch more top videos, highlights, and B/R original content Right Arrow Icon
    Bleacher Report @BleacherReport

    From LSU to Cleveland. Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr are teammates again 🤝 https://t.co/4wrMIlYwc3

    Paul Dehner Jr. @pauldehnerjr

    Beckham and Landry back together. Best friends from LSU (along with Jeremy Hill, actually). Frightening for rest of AFC North that is treadmilling or backsliding this offseason. https://t.co/aH5CIzjwel

    Others looked at things from the Giants' perspective:

    Peter King @peter_king

    The Giants are an expansion team with a 38-year-old quarterback.

    Judy Battista @judybattista

    As we said earlier today, Dave Gettleman always left just a little daylight in his comments, when he said "we didn't sign him to trade him." Just stunning.

    Here is a look at the best of the rest:

    Xavier Rhodes @XavierRhodes29_

    What is going on!!!!! INSANE OFFSEASON!!!!!!!

    Ross Tucker @RossTuckerNFL

    Are the Cleveland Browns the favorites to win the AFC North???

    RJ Bell @RJinVegas

    ... And the Browns were the most bet team to win the Super Bowl at some books LAST YEAR!

    Field Yates @FieldYates

    The NFL should open the season with the Patriots hosting the Browns on Thursday night of Week 1.

    Cleveland went 7-8-1 last season with Mayfield leading the way. He now has a three-time Pro Bowler who is just 26 years old as a true No. 1 receiver, which will make the offense all the more dynamic.

    Beckham surpassed 1,000 receiving yards in four of his first five years in the league, falling short in 2017 only because he suffered an injury and played only four games.

    If he stays healthy again in 2019, he could help lead the Browns to the playoffs for the first time since the 2002 campaign.